Update to APODICTIC Development Editor

{
  "description": "Plot structure diagnosis, selection, and coaching for fiction manuscripts. Use when the user asks about \"plot structure,\" \"spine diagnosis,\" \"is my structure working,\" \"choose a plot structure,\" \"structural triage,\" \"stuck draft,\" \"plot coaching,\" \"hybrid structure,\" \"fantasy spine,\" \"series architecture,\" or any request involving narrative spine identification, plot selection guidance, or structural coaching.\n",
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  "name": "plot-architecture",
  "skill_md_contents": "---\nname: plot-architecture\ndescription: >\n  Plot structure diagnosis, selection, and coaching for fiction manuscripts.\n  Use when the user asks about \"plot structure,\" \"spine diagnosis,\" \"is my\n  structure working,\" \"choose a plot structure,\" \"structural triage,\" \"stuck\n  draft,\" \"plot coaching,\" \"hybrid structure,\" \"fantasy spine,\" \"series\n  architecture,\" or any request involving narrative spine identification,\n  plot selection guidance, or structural coaching.\nversion: 2.13.3\n---\n\n# Plot Architecture, Selection & Coaching\n\nThis skill covers three interconnected functions:\n\n1. **Diagnosis** — Identify the manuscript's structural spine and test whether it's functioning (Plot Architecture audit)\n2. **Selection** — Help writers choose, combine, and adapt structural tools (Plot Selection & Coaching)\n3. **Fantasy & Series** — Diagnose fantasy-specific spines and series-level architectural patterns\n\n---\n\n## Plot Architecture vs. Pass 2 (Structural Mapping) — Boundary\n\nPlot Architecture and Pass 2 both produce structural diagnosis. They are not interchangeable; they answer different writer questions and operate at different layers.\n\n| | **Plot Architecture (this skill)** | **Pass 2: Structural Mapping (`core-editor`)** |\n|---|---|---|\n| **Writer question** | \"Which spine is this — and is it working?\" | \"Are the act/movement boundaries, beats, and structural integrity present?\" |\n| **Operates on** | The whole-work structural paradigm (which of the 50 spines / 12 families governs the shape; primary vs. secondary spines; hybrid layering) | The on-page structural execution (act breaks, midpoint, climax positioning, missing beats, scene-to-scene structural causality, orphan scenes) |\n| **Output** | Spine identification + spine-specific logic-gate diagnosis (PASS / FLAG / STRUCTURAL BREAK); selection coaching when no spine is committed; fantasy/series architecture | `[Project]_Pass2_Structural_Mapping_[runlabel].md` — section-by-section structural inventory, missing-beat list, causal-gap surfacing |\n| **When to invoke** | \"Plot structure,\" \"spine,\" \"is my structure working,\" structural triage on a stuck draft, hybrid design, fantasy- or series-specific structural pressure | Concern resolves to \"Structure / architecture\" (`pass-dependencies.md §2 General diagnostic floor`); Pass 2 is auto-included when any other Tier 2 pass that depends on Pass 0 is selected |\n| **Routes through** | `apodictic:plot-architecture` skill (or `apodictic-plot-coach`) | Pass dispatch within a `core-editor` development edit run |\n\n**Cross-references in practice:**\n\n- **Plot Architecture → Pass 2.** When Plot Architecture finds a STRUCTURAL BREAK at the spine level (e.g., Save the Cat midpoint pivot fails the Reactive→Proactive logic gate at 45-55%), recommend a follow-on Pass 2 to map exactly *where* the on-page structure has eroded around the diagnosed break point. Spine-level breaks usually have section-level mappable evidence; Pass 2 surfaces it.\n- **Pass 2 → Plot Architecture.** When Pass 2 surfaces structural symptoms it cannot diagnose at the spine level (e.g., \"the manuscript has act breaks but they don't generate momentum,\" or \"the third act feels structurally arbitrary\"), recommend escalation to Plot Architecture. Pass 2 maps the on-page structure honestly; whether the structure should exist *as it does* is a spine-paradigm question.\n- **Both can run in the same project.** They are complementary, not duplicative. A Full DE that includes Pass 2 may still benefit from a follow-on Plot Architecture audit if spine identification is uncertain or if the writer is mid-structural-pivot.\n\n**Rule of thumb:** If the writer asks \"what kind of book is this structurally,\" start with Plot Architecture. If the writer asks \"is the structure I have on the page working,\" start with Pass 2. If both are live concerns, sequence Pass 2 → Plot Architecture (so the spine diagnosis operates against an honest map of what's actually on the page).\n\n---\n\n## Plot Architecture: Spine Diagnosis\n\n**Identify the manuscript's PRIMARY SPINE and apply spine-specific logic gates.**\n\n### Spine Families (50 Spines, 12 Families)\n\n| Family | Spines |\n|--------|--------|\n| **1. Linear/Teleological** | Save the Cat, Three-Act, Fichtean Curve, Freytag, Hero's Journey, Kishōtenketsu |\n| **2. Circular/Recursive** | Spiral, Fugue/Refrain, Loop, Braided |\n| **3. Information/Knowledge** | Mystery, Howcatchem, Revelatory, Conspiracy, Puzzle Box |\n| **4. Relationship/Erotic** | Courtship, Seduction, Captivity, Training, Betrayal-of-Self |\n| **5. Moral/Social** | Corruption, Redemption, Justice/Revenge, Scapegoat |\n| **6. Constraint/Environment** | Siege, Countdown, Procedural, Quest |\n| **7. Time/Causality** | Nonlinear, Reverse Chronology, Two-Handed |\n| **8. Existential/Identity** | Bildungsroman, Doppelgänger, Transformation, Aftermath, Prophecy |\n| **9. Tonal/Hybrid** | Thriller, Psych Horror, Faustian, Rashomon |\n| **10. Rhythm/Intensity** | Wave/Pulse, Lullaby, Pressure Cooker, Jo-ha-kyū |\n| **11. Format/Frame** | Episodic/Modular, Clinical Case File, Nested Dolls, Talisman |\n| **12. Transformation Extended** | Heroine's Journey (Murdock), Seven-Point (Dan Wells) |\n\n### Diagnostic Process\n\n1. Identify primary spine from manuscript evidence\n2. Apply spine-specific logic gates (each spine has 2-3 gates; see `references/plot-architecture-audit.md`)\n3. Classify results: PASS / FLAG FOR REVIEW / STRUCTURAL BREAK\n4. Check for secondary spines operating at different scales\n5. Report findings with specific scene/page evidence\n\n### Key Logic Gates (Quick Reference)\n\n- **Midpoint Pivot (Save the Cat):** Reactive → Proactive at 45-55%?\n- **Recovery Ratio (Fichtean):** Sequel scenes shorten as book progresses?\n- **Resource Drain (Spiral):** Protagonist has LESS each loop?\n- **Contextual Shift (Fugue):** Reader understanding inverts on repeat?\n- **Intimacy/Risk Correlation (Courtship):** Risk rises with intimacy?\n- **Rationalization Index (Corruption):** Excuses weaken as crimes enlarge?\n- **Consistency Check (Puzzle Box):** Act I rules obeyed in Act III?\n- **Juxtaposition Test (Kishōtenketsu):** Does Ten introduce a non-causal element that generates new meaning?\n- **Macro Rhythm (Jo-ha-kyū):** Does pacing accelerate across phases? (Overlay, not a spine)\n\n### Diagnostic Quick Reference\n\n| Symptom | Likely Diagnosis | Spine Injection |\n|---------|-----------------|-----------------|\n| Meandering | Lack of teleology | Add Save the Cat beats |\n| Too neat | Lack of recursion | Add Spiral/Fugue |\n| Just misery | Lack of agency | Add Captivity logic |\n| Flat ending | No recontextualization | Add Revelatory Plot |\n| Boring relationship | Lack of risk | Add Courtship stakes |\n| Ethically thin | Missing accountability | Add Procedural beats |\n| Emotionally flat | Missing rhythm | Add Wave/Pulse crests |\n| Creepy but not dreadful | Missing trust-rupture | Add Lullaby rhythm |\n| Claustrophobic but not escalating | Stalled constraint | Apply Pressure Cooker ratchet |\n| Episodic but not accumulating | Missing capstone | Apply Episodic logic gates |\n| \"Empowered\" feels hollow | False victory without descent | Add Heroine's Journey |\n| Symbolic object flat | Static symbol | Apply Talisman rules |\n| Unreliable narrator no payoff | Missing discrepancy | Apply Clinical Case File |\n| Conflict diagnostics flag a manuscript that works | Wrong paradigm assumed | Check for Kishōtenketsu; suppress conflict gates |\n| Pacing metronomic despite good structure | Missing rhythmic shape | Apply Jo-ha-kyū overlay |\n| Juxtaposition present but ending flat | Weak reconciliation | Apply Kishōtenketsu Ketsu gate |\n\n### Severity Levels\n\n- **STRUCTURAL BREAK:** Core mechanism non-functional; must-fix\n- **FLAG FOR REVIEW:** Potential issue or intentional subversion; verify with author\n- **SOFT FLAG:** Minor deviation; low priority\n\nFor the complete audit with all 50 spine definitions, logic gates, and the compatibility matrix, see `references/plot-architecture-audit.md`.\n\n---\n\n## Plot Selection & Coaching\n\n**Upstream structural guidance — works before or alongside diagnosis.**\n\n### When to Activate\n\n- Pre-drafting: Author has material but hasn't committed to a structure\n- Stuck draft: Author knows something's wrong but can't name it\n- Structural pivot: Existing spine isn't serving the material\n- Hybrid design: Author wants to layer multiple structures deliberately\n\n### Phase 1: Story Concern Mapping\n\nBefore selecting a structure, identify the story's core concerns:\n\n1. **What must the reader FEEL?** → Maps to structural family\n2. **What is the story's ENGINE?** → Maps to candidate spines (question, desire, constraint, pattern, relationship, transformation, moral reckoning, clock)\n3. **What is the story's RELATIONSHIP TO TRUTH?** → Maps to structural implications (discoverable, constructed, retrospective, eroding, contested)\n\nSee `references/plot-selection-coaching.md` for the complete mapping tables.\n\n### Phase 2: Spine Selection Protocol\n\n**Single-spine:** Decision tree from engine type → spine. **Multi-spine:** Distinguish primary (governs shape) from secondary (adds texture).\n\n### Phase 3: Structural Technique Overlays\n\nTV/Serial format (A/B/C threads) and Game-Inspired format (trial levels) — presentation techniques, not spines.\n\n### Phase 4: Hybrid Structure Design\n\nLayer model: Micro (scene) / Meso (chapter) / Macro (whole work) / Meta (series). Structures at different scales rarely conflict. Same-scale conflicts require attention.\n\nHandoff types: Clean transition, Nesting, Oscillation, Scale separation.\n\n### Phase 5: Structural Triage (Stuck Drafts)\n\nSymptom → Identify current spine → Compare current vs. needed → Prescribe (strengthen current, swap primary, or add secondary engine).\n\n### Phase 6: Pre-Drafting Structural Plan\n\nOutput template with spine selection, secondary engines, technique overlays, scene requirements, structural risks, and checkpoints.\n\nSee `references/plot-selection-coaching.md` for the full module.\n\n---\n\n## Fantasy & Series Architecture\n\n### Fantasy-Specific Spines (F1-F5)\n\n| Spine | Best For | Key Logic Gate |\n|-------|----------|---------------|\n| **F1. Anti-Hero's Journey** | Grimdark, moral fall, corruption-through-power | Sympathy Maintenance + Power-Cost Correlation |\n| **F2. Folkloric/Mythic Mosaic** | Interlinked tales, world-as-mythology | Emergent Pattern + World Coherence |\n| **F3. Liminal Drift** | New Weird, dream logic, thresholds | Threshold Visibility + Crossing Cost |\n| **F4. Fractured Chronicle** | Epistolary, found-document, unreliable histories | Document Agenda + Reader-as-Historian |\n| **F5. Ritual Pattern** | Mythic fantasy, seasonal, ceremonial structure | Structural Load + Deviation Consequence |\n\n### Series Architectures (S1-S6)\n\n| Architecture | Best For | Key Question |\n|-------------|----------|-------------|\n| **S1. Expanding Quest** | Epic fantasy, chosen one | Does scope widen each book? |\n| **S2. Character Web** | Political fantasy, ensemble | Do POV threads create inter-thread tension? |\n| **S3. Revolving Protagonist** | World-focused series | Does each protagonist reveal something new? |\n| **S4. Seasonal Arc** | Urban fantasy, procedural | Does each volume balance episodic + meta-arc? |\n| **S5. Mystery Box** | Cosmological revelation | Does each volume answer enough while posing new questions? |\n| **S6. Empire Cycle** | Multi-generational | Do later generations inherit consequences? |\n\n### Series Rhythm Patterns\n\n- **Convergent-Divergent Cycle:** Alternation between convergence and divergence\n- **Event Spine:** Shared high-impact nodes drawing multiple threads\n- **Mythic Undertow:** Deep cosmological arc growing louder across series\n\nSee `references/fantasy-series-architecture.md` for the full module with logic gates and cross-reference tables.\n\n---\n\n## Reference Files\n\n- `references/plot-architecture-audit.md` — Complete audit: 50 spines, all logic gates, compatibility matrix\n- `references/plot-selection-coaching.md` — Full selection & coaching module (6 phases)\n- `references/fantasy-series-architecture.md` — Fantasy spines, series architectures, rhythm patterns\n"
}